Because
by oliviikate
Summary: Zim is running for his life. Dib is close behind, ready to corner him, give his location to the Earth government, and end it once and for all. It's only a matter of time.
Dib looked all around him, and let out a sigh. It was a gorgeous night. Dib truly would have preferred to spend it stargazing rather than hunting down that dumb alien. However, instead of sitting on the roof of his house looking into the night sky, he stood in the middle of a thick forest with tall trees and mossy rocks. White beams of light shone off of the moon, casting a white haze over everything it touched. The forest floor was littered with grass, getting tangled around his ankles wherever he stepped. It was pretty annoying.

Looking closely at the tracker, Dib saw that he was right on top of the ship, which meant that Zim had to be close by as well.

He had snagged the tracking device from Tak's ship, and that was how they kept finding Zim after he ran. The alien hadn't seemed to figure out yet that his ship was what kept giving him away. He'd been traveling with it for weeks now, thinking it was keeping him safe. In reality, the irken would probably be safer simply ditching it somewhere and traveling without it. Even leaving the planet would be better in his favor, but for some reason, Zim hadn't left Earth's atmosphere since the whole fiasco started. Dib supposed it was easier this way, as they would just be able to keep following Zim across the planet until he found himself unable to escape the government's grasp. He mentally thanked Zim for his stupidity.

Growing impatient, Dib hit the tracker, grumbling between clenched teeth. It was rather rusty when it came to picking up the exact location of Zim's ship, as it was usually off by about a few hundred yards or so. Dib supposed that might happen to a piece of technology after crashing onto Earth from space. He still found the problem an inconvenience, however.

After searching around several thick trees, Dib found what he was looking for; Zim's voot cruiser. He let out a small gasp, grinning with excitement. He waited a moment, listening to make sure that Zim wasn't too close by. When he was sure the coast was clear, he stepped out towards the ship. When he reached it, he took a peek inside. GIR was sleeping soundly on the driver's seat.

Dib didn't waste another second, getting straight to work. He scanned the sides of the cruiser until he found a rather large panel. Being as quiet as possible, he opened it. Peering inside, Dib saw an incredible amount of wires, tanks, and other mechanical parts. This was similar to what he'd worked with while fixing Tak's ship. Now he would have to unfix Zim's; a simple task.

Dib immediately began to snip wires in half, undo screws, and empty tanks. He did this until he was sure he had to have done damage to at least several of the ship's systems. Proud of his work, he put the panel back into place.

Next, Dib had to make sure that Zim was at least close by. He most likely was, since that had been a recurring pattern in this particular game of cat and mouse. Always near his precious spaceship. With the voot broken, they would need to know where Zim was, rather than his ship, as Zim would no longer be flying away with it, assuming Dib had broken it effectively.

Dib hoped that the General was right in forming this plan. If Zim managed to escape without his voot, tracking him would be impossible. If he got away, it could be years of tracking before they found Zim again, assuming they were even able to find him. But the General had said that they couldn't waste any more time chasing the alien only for him to fly away, and that the risk would be worth taking. Dib could only hope he was right.

Dib reached a small clearing a few dozen yards away from the voot. It was covered in the same amount of tall grasses as the rest of the forest, but there was also a variety of wild flowers strewn about the clearing. The soft moonlight gave a calming and tranquil sense to the little area of the forest, and Dib admired it.

The boy was almost too busy enjoying the calmness about the forest that he nearly forgot to notice Zim laying right in the middle of the clearing, his limbs spread out like that of a starfish. Dib nearly shouted out with excitement upon the discovery of the alien's location, but quickly caught himself. Silently, he crouched behind a bush, pulling out his communicator and sending his location to the troop. He returned his communicator to his belt, where it had its own hook. In a few short minutes, the troop would be at that exact spot, hopefully with Zim at their mercy. All he had to do now was sit tight and make sure Zim stayed where he was.

Dib had to say, Zim was in pretty bad shape. The troop had shown him no kindness over the past few weeks, using whatever type of military technology that would inflict harm in hopes the alien would slow down. However, he'd still managed to escape with that voot of his, albeit with nasty injuries. Zim had dark bruises all over his body, visible through his tattered uniform. His face was scratched, and in a few places, there were even deep gashes. His arm was wrapped tightly with a thick layer of gauze. Dib noticed how badly stained the gauze was with light pink alien blood. He recalled about a week before when Zim had been hit by one of the military guns. He had been thrown a few feet due to the impact of the hit and was knocked over. However, the alien had still picked himself right back up and continued in his escape, ignoring his new injury.

But Zim seemed to be oblivious to his wounds. All he did was lay in the middle of the clearing, limbs sprawled out. The alien stared blankly at the night sky. Despite the lifeless expression, Dib could tell the alien was in deep thought. About what, he didn't know. Perhaps he was reflecting on the past few weeks. Perhaps he was just clearing his mind. It could've been anything. Whatever Zim was thinking about, he looked extremely calm. The calmest Dib had seen him in weeks, or maybe ever.

Time had almost stood still things were so calm in the woods at that moment. The silence was broken, however, when Dib's foot slipped out from under his crouching body, breaking a small twig. Zim suddenly sat straight up, his antennae perked. The Irken turned around, staring intently the area of the tree line that held Dib and his bush. The boy held his breath, trying not to make a sound or move a muscle.

Zim stood up with a grimace, implying that he was indeed quite sore from his injuries, and walked straight toward Dib's bush. When he reached the leafy shrub, he peered inside, looking straight through at Dib, who tried his best to act like a plant. That didn't work, however, and Zim reached straight through the bush, grabbing Dib by the collar. He stood, pulling his arms through the top of the shrub with a wince. He pulled Dib closer. The Irken's eyes glared daggers so sharp that the human could almost feel them.

Zim looked like he was about to speak when he was distracted by the distant noise of a vehicle. Zim's eyes flooded with fear, and he immediately dropped Dib to the ground, half running, and half limping off in the direction of the voot. Dib immediately got to his feet and chased after.

Dib stopped when he reached the voot. Zim was already inside, frantically pushing buttons. However, nothing happened, and the voot remained grounded. The expression of fear on Zim's face turned to desperate panic as he hopped out of the ship, circling around it until he found the panel Dib had previously fiddled with. The alien removed the panel, and he immediately began to fiddle with wires and screws. After a moment of this, a black smoke began to emit from the sides of the ship, and Zim let out a squeal of terror. He turned his attention to the woods where the noises of men, dogs, and vehicles were coming from and then back to the voot, seeming to be weighing his options. He repeated this action a few times before giving into his panic and bolting off into the woods opposite to where the noises came.

Dib was left next to the voot to be stunned for a moment, but quickly made the decision to stumble after the alien. He knew he was close behind when he heard the crunching of leaves a few feet in the distance, and tried not to let the sound get too far away. Dib had to admit, Zim was still pretty fast for an injured alien.

Dib ran as fast as his legs could carry him, heart thumping in his ears as he darted around bushes and trees. The tall grass wrapped itself around his ankles, and he tore strands from the ground as he ran along. As he grew more and more tired, he reminded himself that they couldn't afford to lose Zim. Not now, when he was weak and injured. If he got away, there would be little to no chance of finding him again.

There was a small space with no trees to Dib's side that he used to his advantage. He was able to run a few feet without having to move around an obstacle, and when he put himself back on Zim's path, he found himself directly behind the alien.

Dib took a mighty leap forward, tackling Zim. The alien let out a sharp cry of surprise, falling to the ground with Dib on top of him. The human boy panted for a moment, eyebrows scrunched together, taking in the most recent events. Then a smug smile spread across his face, and he let out a light laugh of victory. It was the greatest feeling. After years of constant fighting against the alien menace, Zim was finally taken down for good.

Dib held Zim down tightly, being careful not to let him escape. The irken wiggled his fingers in an attempt to break free of Dib's grasp around his wrists, breathing heavily. Dib only made his grip tighter.

"You can't escape now, Zim!" Dib said triumphantly, "Can't you see? You've finally lost! If I were you, I would stop the struggling and save my energy for when awful experiments were being done on me! You'll really need it then!" he taunted.

Zim quit his struggling, giving Dib an expression of anger. Dib's mouth curled into a sickening grin. He was so busy basking in his newfound victory that he failed to notice when Zim slightly arched his back, letting a single spider leg slide out of his PAK. It was too late for Dib to stop the leg before it came swinging at him, whacking the human boy off the irken.

Dib fell a few yards away and clumsily scrambled onto his hands and feet. He angrily looked in the direction he'd came flying from and saw Zim clambering into some nearby bushes. Dib's face sank into a scowl, and he hurried to his feet to resume the chase.

Zim seemed extra determined to get away this time, making awkward turns and taking strange paths in an obvious attempt to confuse Dib. After a short time, Dib realized that Zim was using his PAK legs as a way to travel faster.

Dib reached a small break in the trees when he realized he'd lost track of Zim's whereabouts. He was the middle of spinning in a circle, trying to choose a way to go when his communicator buzzed at his side. Startled by the sudden message, Dib answered it;

"H-Hullo?" Dib said quietly into the receiver. The General's voice barked back at him in a harsh tone.

"Where are you, Dib?" said the General in his gruff voice, "You aren't at the coordinates you sent us!"

Dib took a moment to answer, feeling disoriented, "I-uh-Zim ran-I followed him! I-I tackled him! But he got away-I'm on his tail right now! Follow my phone's location!"

With that, Dib hung up, immediately recognizing his foolish decision of answering a call rather than following Zim. He'd gotten too cocky and let the alien slip from his grasp, and then he'd given Zim enough time to run, to get away. He'd failed the mission.

Dib face-palmed with a force that was more like a smack to the face, and he groaned in frustration. He unconsciously picked up a small pebble by his feet and chucked it into some nearby bushes in anger. He was so busy pacing and silently cussing himself out that he almost forgot to notice that the bush said "Ow!"

His mouth straight across, Dib slowly turned his attention toward the bush, staring in disbelief for a brief moment. Slowly, he edged closer and closer until the bush was directly in front of him, and cautiously peered behind it. As expected, there was Zim, sitting on the ground, looking up at Dib with wide eyes, his arms wrapped tightly around his knees.

The two stared at each other in silence for a moment. Then Dib took his chance and found himself diving on top of the alien once again. However, this time Zim rolled away before Dib could make contact.

Dib crawled after Zim and quickly got to his feet. For reasons Dib was unsure of, Zim continued crawling, making it easier for Dib to make up the space between them. Taking one final pounce, Dib tackled Zim one final time. Him and the alien collided with a force that sent them sliding through a shrub, bringing them to the forest's edge. Taking in their surroundings, the human and alien found themselves on a bluff, the peak of a small mountain. In the valley below was a distant city, surrounded by foothills much like the one that Zim and Dib were on. Farms and meadows littered the valley, and mountains much bigger than the one they sat on loomed in the distance. The pair sat in a patch of tall grass that divided the forest from a treacherous cliff. There was nowhere for Zim to run but back into the woods where the troop would be waiting. It was the end. The only thing Dib had to do was keep him there.

Dib quickly hopped to his feet, holding out his hands like one would do to tame a wild animal.

"You're-You're not gonna get away. Not this time!" Dib tried to think of a threat, but there was none. Zim knew they were coming anyways.

Zim stood up, brushing off his already tattered and dirty uniform as if it would make a difference. Dib had failed to notice how he'd grown over time. The human now stood several inches taller than the alien, who hadn't grown an inch since he'd first arrived on Earth. Zim spent a moment glaring up at Dib, seeming to be making decisions on his next move. Dib braced himself for another fight.

"Fine," Zim finally said, seeming to accept a bit too easily that it was the end for him, "I'm tired of running from you beasts anyways. You're all starting to bore me." He held out his arms for Dib to cuff him, his hands making little fists.

"W-What?" Dib was baffled. "You're really going to surrender that easily?"

"Sure, yeah." Zim looked away shamefully, continuing to hold out his arms. There was an unfamiliar tone to the Irken's voice. He spoke flatly and quietly. He seemed too calm about the whole situation, openly accepting that there was nowhere else for him to run.

"You're-You're not gonna call your irken friends to come destroy the planet?!"

Zim scoffed, "I've would've tried getting them to come if I could, Dib-beast."

"I thought you said if you were in danger they would destroy the planet in an attempt to rescue you!" Dib was beyond confused. Had all those threats been simple lies for protection? Dib refused to believe so.

"I thought that too," Zim shook his hands, "Now hurry up and put your silly human arm restraints on me!

"I don't have any hand-cuffs!"

Zim looked beyond angry, " _Fine."_

He turned on his heel and marched to the end of the bluff. He sat, pulling his knees to his chest and resting his hands on them, staring into the valley below with a scowl on his face.

Dib sauntered up behind the alien, "Why are you acting so weird?"

"I'm not acting weird, you're acting weird!" Zim spat. Dib edged nearer and was surprised at the alien's expression. He wasn't crying, but his eyes showed he was holding back tears. He looked angry and hurt. Dib was unsure of how to react to it.

"You're just gonna surrender that easily?!"

" _Yes."_ Zim hissed.

"Why?!"

" _Because!"_

Dib failed to care that Zim may not want to talk about his reasoning, and continued egging the alien on. He was too curious as to why Zim was still on a planet that wanted him dead.

"Why surrender when you could have gone back to Irk?! Y'know, your home?"

Zim was shaking, " _Because."_

"What's so bad about home, Zim?"

"Nothing. Irk is great."

"Then why not go there?!"

" _Because!"_

"Because why?!"

" _Because Irk is not my home!"_ Zim shouted, and then there was a brief moment of silence. He pulled his knees closer, hiding his face. It was as if he had just admitted something he'd been denying to himself for a long time. His body shook like one's did when they were trying to hold it all back but could barely do it. He took a quiet breath, and his next words he said quietly, coming out as a sad croak, "Not anymore…"

He let out a violent sob that shook his tiny body. He obviously tried to hold himself back from doing it again. The little alien was shaking he was trying so hard to keep from crying. However, he quickly succumbed to his emotions, seemingly unable to handle himself anymore. He choked again, and then his entire body shook from the force of the oncoming tears.

Zim had broken. He said nothing. He simply sat, his back to Dib, sobbing. There were only sobs. Dib felt a pang of sympathy for the alien, but quickly decided that Zim deserved no pity. Zim had hurt so many people. He'd killed so many people. He'd scared so many people. Someone who hurt others deserved no pity in Dib's eyes.

A cold wind blew in from the north. The stars twinkled in the purple night sky, and the city lights in the valley below cast a buttery yellow light on the sides of the mountains. It was a beautiful night. Dib took the place next to Zim and sat, admiring the valley below and choosing to ignore the alien's tears.

In the few minutes he sat next to Zim, Dib learned that the irken was no pretty crier. His body lurched. His face flushed a dark shade of green. His mouth slobbered, and fat tears stained the alien's cheeks. Slowly, his sobs slowed down.

"You good?" Dib asked in a mocking tone, suggesting he actually didn't care.

" _Go away, you filthy human,"_ Zim demanded. He knew that Dib couldn't care less.

Dib didn't go away. He sat next to Zim as his sobs became silent tears that ran down his face. He sat as the troop came pouring out of the woods. He sat as Zim broke out of his little ball of sadness to look at the troop with eyes that showed true helplessness and fear. He sat as the troop members dragged Zim away. He sat as the troop member tried to put Zim into a crate as he kicked and screamed, begging for them to let him go. He sat as they tranquilized Zim. He sat while Zim fell into unconsciousness. He sat while they put Zim in the crate and locked him up. He sat while Zim and his crate where carried away.

Dib sat until the general told him Zim was contained and it was time to go home. Silently, he stood and disappeared back into the woods. It was over.

 _((_ _ **Note**_ _: Did I spend too much time on this? Yes. Do I regret it? No._

 _For real though, I had this type of scenario in mind for too long, and I had to do something with it. I couldn't resist. I hope it's not too cliché._

 _Overall, I'm pretty proud with how it came out. I hope you enjoyed, thank you so much for reading!))_


End file.
